Beyond how to use a coffee pot, what does the Heytea spoon case show

A social media post accused a Heytea employee of stirring milk tea with the handle end of a long spoon while talking on the phone in the preparation area. The image spread quickly and renewed debate over hygiene and staff conduct at tea beverage shops. Heytea's customer service replied to the poster but did not clearly state whether the actions broke store rules.

Food service workers noted that phones are typically barred from preparation areas, and stirring a drink with a spoon handle counts as a clear violation. The case echoes ongoing concerns about how drinks are assembled, whether the vessel is a shaker, a pot, or a cup, and what the finished drink is made of. No regulatory conclusion was reported.

In the early hours of this morning, a social media post with images pushed Heytea to the forefront of a food safety controversy. The posting user claimed that last night she witnessed an employee in a milk tea shop's preparation area stirring the milk tea about to be served with the handle end of a long-handled spoon while answering a phone call, a scene that made her doubt the store's hygiene standards. As the post gained traction, many milk tea consumers said it was hard to accept, given that Heytea has long been known among its peers for strict food safety management. However, some voices argued that the employee was just taking a call and never stopped working, so there was no need to overinterpret it; some food service workers explicitly pointed out that phones are not allowed in preparation areas in the first place, and stirring a drink with the handle end of a spoon is a clear violation. After the incident escalated, Heytea's official customer service account responded to the poster but did not give a clear answer on whether the employee's actions violated regulations.

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In the early hours of this morning, a netizen posted an image-and-text update on social media titled "Is this really hygienic for a milk tea shop?", once again making food safety and employee conduct standards at tea beverage stores a focus of public debate.

The netizen said that the previous night at a milk tea shop, she saw an employee in the preparation area not only chatting while preparing orders, but also holding a phone to talk with one hand while gripping a long spoon with the other, constantly stirring the milk tea about to be served with the handle end of the spoon. She therefore questioned whether this way of serving drinks met standards and raised doubts about the employee's approach.

From the footage, a man in a Heytea work uniform could be seen standing inside the window, wearing a mask, talking on the phone while skillfully stirring the milk tea on the counter. Most puzzling of all, he had flipped the stainless steel long-handled spoon around and inserted the handle half into the bottom of the milk tea to stir it.

As the post gradually gained popularity, many netizens who also regularly order milk tea said they found it somewhat hard to accept. After all, when it comes to hygiene standards, Heytea can be said to be a leading model among its peers. Even from the perspective of employees' daily sharing (and complaining), one can sense that this brand has strict requirements for its products, which indirectly reflects its emphasis on food safety.

However, regarding the employee taking a phone call while preparing drinks, some said that if there really was an urgent matter, it was understandable: "Life is not easy for anyone; it was just a phone call, and the person never stopped making the milk tea."

In addition, many Heytea stores are currently facing understaffing. Since the employee had to answer the phone while making milk tea, the phone was most likely the store's phone—perhaps a customer calling to coordinate something, or management calling to check on the situation—caught between genuinely being too busy and worrying about a complaint on the other end. In their view, as long as nothing was delayed and the product was not affected, there was no need to make too much of it.

At this point, some workers who had previously been employed at similar food service stores explicitly pointed out that this was a violation. Heytea's requirements are very strict, and phones have never been allowed in the preparation area; anyone caught would have their pay docked. Even calling a customer was not allowed in this way, let alone his "baffling move" of stirring the drink with the spoon turned upside down.

Regarding what the photographer saw, some speculated that perhaps a customer requesting a refund for a delivery order had claimed there was a foreign object in the drink, and this cup was probably the returned one—after all, "Heytea, as I remember it, wouldn't do this in front of a customer with a drink about to be served." However, this claim was quickly rejected by the posting netizen, because the milk tea in the footage was made on the spot right in front of her, so there was no question of it being "returned."

In response to the controversy, Heytea's official customer service account also gave a "response" to the poster this morning, but regarding other netizens' question of whether the employee's actions constituted a violation, the Heytea customer service representative did not give much of an answer.

Image source: screenshot from the internet

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